Ukulele / Ukelele

Sangitamiya offers a wide range of ukuleles, including over 50 different models in all four ukulele sizes (soprano, concert, tenor and baritone), as well as the ukulele bass or U-Bass. Here it is possible to find a quite comprehensive selection of instruments from Kala Brand Music, one of the foremost ukulele brands in the world. Other ukulele brands such as Ashbury from the UK, Hora from Romania, and Tenson from Gewa Music Germany, are also available.

About the ukulele

History

Ukulele, also spelled “ukelele”, is a four-string instrument directly associated with the Hawaiian archipelago in the western coast of the United States. The word “ukulele” means “jumping flea” in Hawaiian, name that the natives used in order to describe the extremely fast finger movements of the ukulele players, which they found to resemble jumping fleas.

The ukulele has its origin in the musical instrument tradition of Portugal. Towards the end of the 19th century three Portuguese individuals who were also instrument players sailed to the archipelago and brought along some instruments, likely cavaquinhos or instruments closely related to them. The sound of the instrument, with its light, bright and joyful sound, charmed the native inhabitants of the islands, who quickly started to develop their own versions of the instruments. The instrument became known internationally around 1920 due to cultural world fairs organised in the United States, particularly in California.

The popularity of the ukulele has increased greatly during the last decades, both amongst music listeners and instrumentalists. The ukulele is an ideal instrument with which to start to learn music or as a first instrument, as it is tuned to an easy an accessible tuning and it allows the beginner to explore melody, harmony and rhythm simultaneously in a friendly manner; it even encourages the player to try singing along as it provides a warm harmonic base for voice accompaniment.

Ukulele sizes

Ukueleles are found in four sizes. The first three sizes are called soprano, concert and tenor; they can all be tuned to the same tuning, which is based on a C-major chord (sometimes raised to a D-major chord) with an added major sixth: G-C-E-A. The soprano is the smallest size, and suits both young and adult players; the concert is a middle size, while the tenor is the biggest of the three, being the most resonant of them all and with the most sound projection, ideal for professional musical environments, whether it be a concert stage or a studio. It is also the first choice of other string-instrument players, such as guitarists, who are used to play on bigger instruments.

The fourth size, the baritone ukulele, has the same tuning as the four highest strings in a guitar: D-G-H-E.
The U-Bass, or ukulele bass, was launched in 2010 by Kala Brand. It has a traditional bass tuning, E-A-D-G, and is built on a baritone ukulele body. It incorporates strings made of polyurethane, a sort of rubbery material that makes the instruments quite thick and soft to play at the same time. All U-Bass models include a pick-up to plug the instrument to an amplifier. Many musicians have referred to the U-Bass as a traveller double-bass, with a fullness and richness in sound comparable to that of a contrabass.

Kala Ukuleles

Kala Music Brand in California, United States, has become one of the foremost ukulele makers in the world, always striving to develop novel and innovative models. Kala Brand instruments reflect the company’s effort to provide unique, cost conscious and high-quality instruments. Sangitamiya offers over 50 different Kala ukulele models.